Gender imbalance in MMORPG: the case of World of Warcraft in Brazil

ABSTRACT

The present article addresses the dynamics of the Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG) with the objective of investigating gender imbalance, focusing on female members of the virtual community. In detail, we seek to understand which factors can influence or inhibit female participation in games and virtual communities. A netnography was employed, collecting about 1000 players’ statements from the World of Warcraft (WoW) gaming community. The results indicate that a dominant male share of players enforces sexism and other male-concepts onto the female players. Although not all female players perceive such behaviours, it does affect a large share of them and thus influences their choices and behaviours in the MMORPG.

KEYWORDS:

• Consumer behaviour
• online games
• World of Warcraft
• WoW
• gender
• netnography
• male chauvinism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES [Funding Number 32004010003P2].

Notes on contributors

Joao Paulo Nascimento Silva

Joao Paulo Nascimento Silva PhD. Researcher in Administration, focusing on Disruptive Innovation and Innovation Ecosystem in Urban Mobility at Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), Brazil. Operates in the areas of Business Models, Disruptive Innovation, Business Ecosystem, Diffusion of Technologies, Sustainable Development, Strategy and Creativity, with an interest in technologies of the Evtols, Autonomous Vehicles, E-banking and Online Games. E-mail: [email protected].

Gustavo Clemente Valadares

Gustavo Clemente Valadares PhD. Researcher at Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), Brazil. He has professional experience in the areas of Strategic Marketing Management, Administration, with an emphasis on Business Administration. He is currently Professor EBTT at the Federal Institute of Southern Minas Gerais (IFSULDEMINAS - Campus Passos). E-mail: [email protected].

Gabriel Pedrosa

Gabriel Pedrosa GOVCOPP, DEGEIT, University of Aveiro, Portugal. PhD Research Manager at Entain Group, London. Insights in entertainment and gaming. E-mail: [email protected].

Daniel Carvalho Rezende

Daniel Carvalho de Rezende Professor at Department of Administration and Economy at Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), Brazil. Daniel does research in Economic Sociology, Consumer Behaviour, Cultural consumption and Marketing. His current projects are “Taste development in the music context„ and “Alternative food networks: market dynamics and sociotechnical devices„. E-mail: [email protected].

Mônica Carvalho Alves Cappelle

Mônica Carvalho Alves Cappelle Professor at Department of Administration and Economy at Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), Brazil.  Mônica does research in Business, HRM, Sociological Theory, Social Theory and Qualitative Social Research. E-mail: [email protected].

Frederico Azevedo Alvim Assis

Frederico Azevedo Alvim Assis PhD. Student in Psychology at Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF), Brazil. He is currently a professor at Faculdades Integradas Vianna Júnior; at Faculdade Descomplica; and professor at the QConcursos and Folha Dirigida websites, preparatory to public tenders. Operates in the areas of Psychology, Business Psychology and Consumer Behavior. Email: [email protected].